Kony Ealy's Development Key to Success for Panthers Defense Without Greg Hardy

There hasn't been a team in the National Football League that's had a more tumultuous 2014 than the Carolina Panthers. On top of numerous player losses in free agency and the retirement of left tackle Jordan Gross, the Panthers placed Pro Bowl defensive end Greg Hardy on indefinite leave as he awaits a second trial on charges of assaulting his former girlfriend.

However, despite all the chaos that has engulfed the team this year, the Panthers sit at 2-0 with a chance Sunday night to potentially establish a two-game lead over the rest of the NFC South.

If the Panthers are going to keep the positive momentum on the field going even while surrounded by controversy off it, any number of players are going to have to step up their games.

Including the team's newest defensive lineman, who is probably the team's best bet at replacing Hardy's ability to harass opposing quarterbacks.

Before we go any further, it's important to get something straight: Nothing that's written here is meant to in any way take away from the seriousness of the charges facing Hardy, charges he's already been convicted of in a bench trial in North Carolina.

Hardy will have his day in front of a jury of his peers, per North Carolina law. However, with his second trial not set to even get underway until November, it's unlikely that there will be a resolution one way or another until after the 2014 season is over. In the meantime, the Panthers still have to go about the business of playing football.

And rookie Kony Ealy is going to have to grow up in a hurry.

The Panthers raised some eyeborows when they selected the 6'4", 273-pound Ealy in the second round of May's NFL draft, especially given the Panthers' needs on the offensive line and at wide receiver.

It wasn't a question of talent. Ealy was an All-SEC selection in 2013 after racking up 9.5 sacks at the University of Missouri. Nolan Nawrocki of NFL.com called Ealy a "big, athletic, ascending, pass-rush talent with the size, burst and flexibility to pressurize the edge as a right defensive end."

Still, with both Hardy and battery mate Charles Johnson on the roster, defensive end seemed to be a position for which the Panthers were more or less set.

Of course, that's all changed now.

It wasn't Ealy who started against the Detroit Lions last week. That honor went to fourth-year pro Mario Addison, who as Steve Reed of the Associated Press pointed out came up huge against the Lions:

Addison was great in that game, but Ealy gives the Panthers the best odds at long-term stability opposite Johnson.

With all due respect to Addison and Frank Alexander (who is eligible to return to the team in Week 5), they're replacement-level talents.

Addison is an undersized journeyman who just had as many sacks against Detroit as he's ever had in a season:

Alexander, on the other hand, is a third-year reserve coming off a four-game suspension who has also never logged more than 2.5 sacks in a season.

They're Band-Aids. Nothing more.

Granted, this isn't to say that Ealy is a can't-miss Pro Bowler in the making. As the NFL Network's Mike Mayock wrote after the draft, "There's a lack of consistency as you watch more game tape" with Ealy.

Of course, you could say the same about 90 percent of young ends; people railed about it with Jadeveon Clowney last year.

That inconsistency was in evidence during Ealy's 31 snaps against the Lions last week. The youngster made a stop in run support, but Ealy received a negative grade as a pass-rusher from Pro Football Focus (subscription required).

With that said, Josh Norris of Rotoworld also saw some positives from Ealy:

Head coach Ron Rivera saw them as well, according to Max Henson of the team's website. "Kony played very well for us," Rivera said. "I like the effort that he gave."

Ealy told Henson he thought he acquitted himself pretty well, although the youngster conceded he still has a way to go:

"

I feel like my level of play has definitely progressed. But I still have a lot to learn. Being at this level, there is never an excuse. I just have to work hard and do better. I love the rotation. We are winning, kicking butt. We are doing it together, and that's the difference maker with this D-line.

"

Ealy's growth should continue as the season progresses and he sees more live action, which is most assuredly a good thing, both in the short and long term.

After playing under the Panthers' franchise tag in 2014, Hardy will be a free agent next year. Johnson's cap number in 2015 is a staggering $20 million.

In other words, big changes are coming up front for the Panthers.

However, that's a bridge to be crossed on another day. For now, the Panthers' concerns are much more immediate because they have gotten off to about the best start they could hope for on the field, especially with everything going to hell around the team off it.

If the Panthers are going to keep that going and capture the NFC South for a second straight year, their trio of young ends will have to continue to fill the huge void left by Hardy's loss. If not, opponents will simply double Johnson, forcing the Panthers to blitz more and potentially expose a suspect Carolina secondary.

In short, and with apologies in advance for a cringe-worthy pun, if the Carolina Panthers are going to get back to the postseason...

The Ealy bird is going to have to get the worm.

Gary Davenport is an NFL Analyst at Bleacher Report and a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association and the Pro Football Writers of America. You can follow Gary on Twitter @IDPManor.